Braciole These recipes are from the archives of the Marra family. This recipe is for a heavier sauce to go with the Braciole. Sauce - Heavy 4 cans to ground peeled tomatoes (Pastene) 1 can tomato paste (Pastene) 4 cups of beef stock ¾ cup of olive oil ½ cup of red wine (from frying pan deglazing) 1 rounded tablespoons of garlic powder 5 Tbs of fresh minced garlic Some salt Some pepper Crushed red pepper 1 ½ tablespoons dried basil 1 teaspoon dried oregano 2 tablespoons dried parsley Cheese – whatever hunks you have. 1 stick pepperoni (Margarita) cut into 6 pieces You can add beef meatballs, pork, chicken or Bracole. Add the oil to a stock pot and on a low heat cook the fresh garlic (do NOT let it fry or get brown - you just want to infuse the oil). Add the can of tomato paste and stir that in to the oil -- this will take a bit of stirring, but turn the heat up a bit and let it "fry" as you are stirring. Add the red wine and the 4 cans of tomatoes along with the remaining ingredients, including any cheese 'rinds' that you might have (I always save the rinds from the Parmesan) -- if you don't have this then add a hunk of Parm to the sauce. Cook on a low heat, 4-6 hours. You don't want it bubble boiling, – add olive oil if needed or more water. This sauce is great to start in the stock pot and then transfer to a slow cooker and just let it go for the 6hrs. Braciole 1 pound beef top round, sliced thin 1/2 cup dried Italian-style bread crumbs 1 garlic clove, minced 2/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano 1/3 cup grated provolone 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves 4 Tbs Olive Oil (divided) Stir the first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl to blend. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the oil. Season mixture with salt and pepper and set aside. Lay the beef (sliced top round or flank steak0 flat on the work surface. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture evenly over the steak to cover the top evenly. Starting at 1 short end, roll up the steak as for a jelly roll to enclose the filling completely. Using butcher's twine, tie the steak roll to secure. Sprinkle the braciole with salt and pepper. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add the braciole and cook until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Add the wine to the pan and bring to a boil. Stir in the marinara sauce. Cover partially with foil and bake until the meat is almost tender, turning the braciole and basting with the sauce every 30 minutes. After 1 hour, uncover and continue baking until the meat is tender, about 30 minutes longer. The total cooking time should be about 1 1/2 hours. Remove the braciole from the sauce. Using a large sharp knife, cut the braciole crosswise and diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Transfer the slices to plates. Spoon the sauce over and serve. Note: This is the way I also learned from the Italian grandmothers. Braciole was for a special meal with family and to this day it gives me that warm fuzzy feeling of nostagia. Please note that I just made it, I never wrote down the directions and it's one of those things where I didn't want to miss a step, so I copied the directions from the Food Network web site. Back to Italian Foods